The governor of Puerto Rico ( es, gobernador de Puerto Rico) is the
head of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, ...
of the
Commonwealth
A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with " republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from th ...
of
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
, and
commander-in-chief of the
Puerto Rico National Guard.
The governor has a duty to enforce
local laws, to
convene
Learning Technology Partners (previously known as Convene) is an early distance learning company and the largest company in that market. The software company
was founded in the late 1980s by Larry Allen when he created collaborative seminary trai ...
the
Legislative Assembly, the power to either
approve or
veto
A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In the most typical case, a president or monarch vetoes a bill to stop it from becoming law. In many countries, veto powers are established in the country's constitution. Veto ...
bills passed by the Legislative Assembly, to appoint government officers, to appoint
justices, and to grant
pardon
A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...
s. Since 1948, the governor has been elected by
the people of Puerto Rico. Prior to that, the governor was appointed either by the
king of Spain (1510–1898) or the
president of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal gove ...
(1898–1948).
Article IV of the
Constitution of Puerto Rico
The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, Constitución del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico) is the controlling government document of Puerto Rico. It is composed of nine articles detailing the structure of the government ...
vests the
executive power on the governor and empowers them with the faculty to appoint officers. These two faculties in conjunction allow the governor to delegate most of their functions while continuing to be the maximum officer and head of government.
History
The first known and recorded
heads of government in the
history of Puerto Rico were the ''
cacique
A ''cacique'' (Latin American ; ; feminine form: ''cacica'') was a tribal chieftain of the Taíno people, the indigenous inhabitants at European contact of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles. The term is a ...
s'', the
tribal chief
A tribal chief or chieftain is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom.
Tribe
The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of western Afroeurasia.
Tribal societies are sometimes categorized ...
s of the natives known as ''
Taínos'' that inhabited the island before the arrival of Spaniards. It is believed that the ''cacique'' rank was apparently established through democratic means. His importance in the tribe was determined by the size of his tribe rather than his
warlord
A warlord is a person who exercises military, economic, and political control over a region in a country without a strong national government; largely because of coercive control over the armed forces. Warlords have existed throughout much of h ...
skills, since the Taínos were mostly a pacifist culture.
Agüeybaná I is the most-well known cacique as he was the one governing all others when the Spaniards arrived in 1493 although
many others existed during his period, as well as before and after him.
Spanish colonial era
When the
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...
colonized Puerto Rico during the 16th century, the Spanish conquistador
Juan Ponce de León
Juan Ponce de León (, , , ; 1474 – July 1521) was a Spanish explorer and ''conquistador'' known for leading the first official European expedition to Florida and for serving as the first governor of Puerto Rico. He was born in Santerv ...
established himself as the island's first governor.
Vicente Yáñez Pinzón had been appointed to take the position of
Captain General
Captain general (and its literal equivalent in several languages) is a high military rank of general officer grade, and a gubernatorial title.
History
The term "Captain General" started to appear in the 14th century, with the meaning of Comma ...
of the City of Puerto Rico prior to the island's colonization, but he never performed this function. As part of the Spanish Empire, the
Spanish monarchy
, coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg
, coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain
, image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg
, incumbent = Felipe VI
, incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...
was in charge of appointing the governor of Puerto Rico. The person selected was in charge of the island's development and wealth and was responsible for reporting the colony's status to the government in Spain.
The first native
Puerto Rican to perform the function was
Juan Ponce de León II
Juan Ponce de León II (1524–1591) was a Spanish official and an acting governor of Puerto Rico. He was the first acting governor to be born on the island.
Early years
Ponce de León II (birth name: Juan Troche Ponce de León), was born in ...
, grandson of the conquistador, who served as interim governor in 1579.
After 1580 Puerto Rico's government was established as the
Captaincy General of Puerto Rico, and subsequent governors held the office of Captain General as well.
As a United States unincorporated territory and commonwealth
On July 25, 1898, at the outbreak of the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (cl ...
, Puerto Rico was invaded by the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
. Following the conclusion of the war, Spain was forced to cede Puerto Rico, along with
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
, the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
and
Guam
Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic ce ...
, to the United States under the
1898 Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Peace between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain, commonly known as the Treaty of Paris of 1898 ( fil, Kasunduan sa Paris ng 1898; es, Tratado de París de 1898), was a treaty signed by Spain and the United Stat ...
. Puerto Rico began the twentieth century under the military rule of the United States with officials, including the governor, who were appointed by the
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal gove ...
.
In 1900,
William McKinley signed the
Foraker Act as a
United States federal law
The law of the United States comprises many levels of codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the most important is the nation's Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the federal government of the United States, as well as ...
, which established civilian (limited popular) government on Puerto Rico.
The new government had a
governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
and an executive council appointed by the President, a
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
with 35 elected members, a judicial system with a Supreme Court, and a non-voting Resident Commissioner in Congress.
The first civilian governor of the island under the Foraker Act was
Charles Herbert Allen. This system was still used after the approval of the
Jones–Shafroth Act, which altered the structure of government in Puerto Rico, and was in use until 1948.
Following the approval of the federal Elective Governor Act by President
Harry S. Truman in 1947, the governor has been elected through a democratic process every four years since 1948.
At that time,
Luis Muñoz Marín became the first democratically elected governor.
The current governmental structure was established under the
Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, ratified in 1952. Sitting governor
Luis Muñoz Marín was re-elected as the first governor under the Constitution. Under Article IV of the Constitution, the governor continues to be popularly elected every four years and is the head of the Commonwealth's
executive branch.
The governor-elect takes office on January 2 of the following year in a public inaugural ceremony which may be preceded by a private oath-taking ceremony.
Powers
The governor is head of the
government of Puerto Rico. They have the power to veto any number of projects that the Puerto Rican Legislature wishes to pass. The governor also has the power to appoint the members of their cabinet, who in turn must be ratified by the Legislature. The governor also has the power to appoint Justices to the
Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
and all the lower courts of the island.
The governor must address the legislature at the beginning of each year to present two speeches, one is the ''State of the Commonwealth'' speech and another in which the governor presents the "Recommended Budget" for the next fiscal year, in which the governor proposes to the state legislature a budget for the consideration of said body. They are also the
commander-in-chief of the
Puerto Rico National Guard and the chief diplomat.
Eligibility
On July 25, 1952, the
Constitution of Puerto Rico
The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, Constitución del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico) is the controlling government document of Puerto Rico. It is composed of nine articles detailing the structure of the government ...
was enacted by Governor Muñoz Marín after the approval by Congress and the President of the United States. Pursuant to section Three, Article IV of the Constitution of Puerto Rico, the governor must be a
citizen of the United States, a resident of Puerto Rico for five consecutive years prior and at least 35 years old at the time of the election.
The governor serves a four-year term which begins on the second day of January after the year of their election and ends on the date their successor takes office. Consecutive service is unlimited, according to the Constitution of the Island.
Luis Muñoz Marín, its first elected governor, served for four consecutive terms from 1949 to 1965, but almost all subsequent governors served either one or two terms; the Constitution of the Commonwealth was ratified by the people of Puerto Rico in 1952. Rafael Hernández Colón, however, served three non-consecutive terms: first from 1973 to 1977, and then from 1985 to 1993.
Elections
The governor is elected by a direct vote from the people. Candidates typically represent a
political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...
, with every elected governor to date () having been a member of the
New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico or the
Popular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico. Only a
plurality
Plurality may refer to:
Voting
* Plurality (voting), or relative majority, when a given candidate receives more votes than any other but still fewer than half of the total
** Plurality voting, system in which each voter votes for one candidate and ...
vote (more than any other candidate) is required to win election, rather than a majority (more than half the votes).
The Puerto Rico Elections Code states that if the margin of victory of a candidate is less than 0.5% of the votes, a full
recount of the election must take place. So far, only in the gubernatorial elections of
1980 and
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
has a recount taken place.
Succession
Upon the death, resignation, or removal from office (by
impeachment and conviction) of a sitting governor, the
secretary of state would then take the office of governor until the end of the four-year term. In case the secretary of state is unwilling or unable to assume it, the
secretary of justice would assume the governorship, followed by the
secretary of treasury, the
secretary of education, the
secretary of labor and human resources, the
secretary of transportation and public works, the
secretary of economic development and commerce, the
secretary of health and the
secretary of agriculture. If none of them is available for succession the Legislative Assembly meets to elect by majority vote of all of its members a governor for the rest of the term. Other provisions exist for the transition between an incumbent governor and a governor-elect.
Similar to some U.S. states, such as California, if the governor is temporarily away from Puerto Rico, the secretary of state, or in their absence the highest ranking
Cabinet member in the
line of succession, becomes
acting governor until the governor's return. In decades past, when off-island gubernatorial travel was infrequent, the powers of the governorship rarely devolved upon the secretary of state or other Cabinet officers. More accessible travel has made the acting governorship a much more common occurrence. During recent times, not only has the secretary of state frequently served as acting governor, but the secretary of justice, and secretary of treasury have as well.
2019 leadership crisis
On July 24, 2019, Governor
Ricardo Rosselló announced his resignation after
two weeks of protests and demonstrations in Puerto Rico. He became the first elected governor to resign. His resignation took effect on August 2, 2019 at 5 pm. Before leaving office, Rosselló nominated
Pedro Pierluisi
Pedro Rafael Pierluisi Urrutia (born April 26, 1959) is a Puerto Rican politician and lawyer currently serving as governor of Puerto Rico. He has previously served as Secretary of Justice, Resident Commissioner, acting
Secretary of State, ...
as secretary of state, intending to make Pierluisi his successor, but his nomination was not approved by the full legislature before Rosselló's resignation took effect. Despite not having been confirmed by the
Senate of Puerto Rico, Pierluisi was sworn in as governor, which prompted a legal challenge. Less than a week later, the
Supreme Court of Puerto Rico declared that Pierluisi had taken office on unconstitutional grounds and removed him from office, effective 5 p.m.
AST on August 7.
At that time, the next in line was then Secretary of Justice,
Wanda Vázquez Garced, who became governor following the original line of succession as it was on August 2 at 5 pm.
See also
*
List of governors of Puerto Rico
References
External links
*
{{Government of Puerto Rico, state=autocollapse
Executive branch of the government of Puerto Rico
Commonwealth constitutional officers of Puerto Rico